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Halo 3: Insurrection (Part Eight + Nine)
Posted By: Wolverfrog<Wolverfrog@gmail.com>
Date: 8 October 2009, 10:51 pm
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I only just now found out that HBO uses tags for italics and bold. Interesting. You may not read this, but I'll post it anyway.
PART 8 - JUDGEMENT
Two days later...
"Demon! Wake up, it's time."
An escort of Elite Honour Guards were descending down the steps to his cell, garbed in full golden armour. They were there to take John to his death.
"No last meal?" John asked, confident as ever, not worried by what lay before him.
One of the Elites sneered, and deactivated the barrier. Making sure his brothers were behind him, he moved into the room and cautiously attached energy manacles to his wrists, holding him in place.
"I hope you won't struggle Demon. It would tarnish the little honour you possess."
He was led quietly out of the cell, and slowly ascended up the staircase. Flickering torches on the walls lit the way. It was all very medieval looking.
It seemed that John's time was up. His only wish now was to go out with a bang.
*********
"Please Thel, there must be another way." Saran pleaded to the Arbiter, as the great Elite prepared to leave for the execution hall.
"Nay brother, there isn't, I must do this. I'm sorry." Came a calm reply.
Thel Vadam was garbed in ceremonial Sangheili armour, white with silver trimmings, and an intricate headpiece. It was the traditional attire one wore for such an event.
"Then let me come with you!" His friend pleaded for the fifth time. Thel let out a long sigh.
"I could not in good conscience allow you to risk your life on the behalf of me Saran, you have a good life here, don't throw it away so carelessly. Fear not, if I and the Spartan make it out alive, we shall come here before departing."
Saran paled noticeably, his face lit by the dim candle on the mantelpiece.
"The Demon? In my house? But, Thel, I-"
"He is not a cyborg Saran, nor a Demon. He is a man with a great heart, and as powerful a warrior as any of our kind."
A long, awkward pause followed, and both the Elites could think of nothing to say. Finally, Saran broke the silence.
"Thel, I would like you to take my sword with you. It has been passed down through my family for generations, and it is an ancient and divine weapon, hand crafted by a skilful forger, much more powerful than the ones they mass produce in the factories these days."
Saran walked over to a display case in the corner of the room, and slowly unlocked it. He bent down, and picked up a metallic, curved device.
"Here," The Elite said, passing it gently over to the Arbiter. "It has saved my life on many occasions, may it do the same for you."
"Saran...I don't know what to say..." Thel whispered, marvelling at the fine crafting of the weapon. He traced the runes on the side with his long, tapered finger.
"Through battle and hardship, this blade shall find it's mark, if thy heart is pure..." He translated out loud.
"Treat it well Thel, and it shall do likewise to you."
Holding the blade firmly in his hand, the Arbiter activated it. Suddenly, with a sharp, sliding crack, a beam of pure violet light emerged, hanging in the air like some lit up angel. The hum it made filled the room with joy.
"Thank you Saran. I know how difficult it was for you to part with this."
"It was nothing. Now go, I'm sure your friend needs help, his execution is in five hours, after all."
"Goodbye Saran, you've been such a good friend all these years."
"Don't get me started off Thel, just go." The Elite replied with a dismissive wave. Both knew that this might be the last time they saw each other.
"Farewell."
Thel left through the back door, and made for the Citadel.
*************
A large crack of light shot through the air of the Elite structure, and with a large bang, Sergeant Johnson and Mendicant Bias fell to the floor.
"That took a bit of effort. The further you get from a teleportation matrix, the harder it is to travel." The Monitor said, drifting off the floor.
"Where are we now?" Avery asked, taking a good look around.
"About five miles west of the Great Citadel of Vadam, where John is being held. To be precise, we are inside a factory of sorts.
Johnson took a cigar from his belt, and began chewing it. He was dismayed to find out he only had seven left, barely enough to last him the week.
"Oh yeah? And what kind of factory is it?" He queried.
"My analysis indicates that we appear to be inside a Scarab factory, one which produces the mining models."
"A Scarab? Are there any that are functional?"
The light around the Monitor pulsed with increasing frequency, as it scoured through the records it had hacked into.
"One seems to be working, a few corridors away. It seems like there are no hostile units around it either, other than Engineers. Ah, my masters created their species a long time ago, back in the golden age. It is good to see them still around, further existence of the Forerunner's legacy."
"You think we could take it?" Johnson asked the Monitor.
"I believe we could Sergeant. Why? Do you have a plan in mind?"
Avery smiled knowingly.
"You could say that Light bulb. You could say that."
"Then follow me, I shall lead you to the vehicle."
They moved around a twisting, confusing corridor, occasionally hearing an Elite bark out an order.
"So." Johnson said as they ran along. "Why exactly are the Elites the bad guys again?"
"No time for that now Sergeant, the execution is in less than five hours."
Johnson gave a grunt of acceptance, and followed without further comment. Soon, they reached the Scarab. Five Engineers hung in the air. Johnson raised his battle rifle to shoot them down.
"Wait Sergeant, there is no need to resort to violence."
"But they're gonna raise the alarm!" He protested.
"Just let me talk to them" The Monitor spoke, as he drifted off to their level.
Mendicant made a series of pulses, and after a few seconds, the Engineers responded with what seemed to be joy. They moved around the Monitor, clapping happily with their long tentacles. After a few more pulses, they seemed to give recognition to a command, and began to descend down to the Scarab, and vanished down below to the control area.
Johnson hopped aboard.
"What was all that about?" He asked the Monitor, who seemed happier than usual.
"Both I and the Engineer's ancestors are constructs of my masters, so we got along fine. I managed to convince them with little effort to help you man the Scarab. They'll be loyal to you now."
"Well ain't that nice?" Johnson mused, walking down to the control room. The Engineers were working away at the console. One made a series of motions, and suddenly, the Scarab came to life.
"Are you ready Sergeant?" Mendicant queried.
"As ready as I'm ever going to be." Came the reply.
***********
The Arbiter arrived in the hall, and mingled in with the rest of the crowd. Up on a pedestal, he could see the new Kaidon, K'zath, sitting eagerly, awaiting the execution. To the right of him was a High Councillor. The left seat was still empty, no one had been found to fill in the vacant seat yet.
Patiently, Thel waited for the Spartan to appear. That would be when he would strike.
***********
John was led further up the corridor, and eventually, reached a large door. An Honour Guard marched stiffly over to a console, and with a hit of a button, the door slid open. With an needed shove from one the Elites, John was tossed out into a large Colosseum like structure. Up high, he could see High Councillor, or Kaidon K'zath smiling smugly down at him.
Judgement day had come.
PART NINE - ESCAPE
Shouts echoed around John, waves of Grunts and Jackals were jeering from the stands, Elites were watching, arms folded with sneers on their condemning faces. And high above sat the new Kaidon and his entourage.
"Demon," Kaidon K'zath spoke in a raspy tone, "You stand before the court here today to pay for your sins. This highest act of heresy must be punished." There were nods around the gigantic room.
"How can I commit heresy when I'm not even a part of your government, O' great Kaidon?" The Spartan mocked.
"Silence! The charges against you are numerous, murder, thievery, heresy, unauthorised landing-"
"What the hell?" John exclaimed in disbelief. "Unauthorised landing? I didn't want to crash here, despite how great you all have been to me."
The Kaidon waved a hand, and suddenly, an Honour Guard standing next to him bashed him to the ground.
"Impudence." He heard the Elite mutter.
"Hold your foul tongue Demon, lest it be ripped for your mouth." The Kaidon called.
"For these crimes Demon, the Council decrees that you be sentenced to death by Plasma Sword. Does anyone in this room have an objection to this?" K'zath cast a dark look around the hallowed hall, daring someone to speak.
"I object!" Shouted a voice, and as one, thousands of beings turned their heads towards this voice. It turned out to be an old Elite in a white robe, standing up. Probably a priest of some sort.
"And on what grounds Deacon?" The Kaidon asked, voice dripping with venom.
"This man has done much for our race, he helped us break away from the Covenant, he stopped the mad man Truth, and most importantly, destroyed the Parasite. And yet, now we are once again engaged in a petty war, you choose to kill him? Shame on you K'zath, scum like you don't deserve to hold power!" The ancient Elite still stood, suddenly concious of the attention he had attracted.
K'zath reclined in his chair, a snarl of anger darkening his face. He turned towards his Guards.
"Kill him." Spoke the Elite simply, the Deacon's face paled.
The Guards hesitated for a second.
"But, noble Kaidon, this Sangeheili is a Deacon, surely we can not-"
"He is a traitor to our race, and an example must be made of him. Now kill him, or else." A crazed look nested upon K'zath's face.
The Guards still wouldn't move.
"We cannot touch this one K'zath, he has done nothing wrong." They insisted.
"Blasphemy!" The Kaidon shouted in anger at them, the Guards flinched. "Very well, if you shall not kill him, I shall do it myself." The Elite drew out an Energy Sword, and strode through the masses to the Deacon, who was still frozen in place with horror, unsure whether or not he should flee.
"Murdering me will not silence the truth K'zath!" The Holy man quivered.
K'zath drew next to him, and threw him down to the floor, scattering a group of nearby Jackals.
"That is where you are wrong." He whispered, and drove the burning blade into the Deacon's heart. The old Elite gave a strangled moan, twitched once, then died. A gasp came up from the crowd.
"Any other objections?" The Kaidon said as he walked back to his throne, his voice echoing throughout the silent hall. No one spoke.
"You heartless bastard." John spoke directly to the Elite's face. Everyone else in the hall silently agreed with the statement.
K'zath smiled.
"Execute the Demon." He spoke grandly. An Honour Guard converged on him, now this was a killing he could follow through. Excited calls rang across the hall.
John tensed himself, ready for one last fight. He heard an Energy Sword crack in the crowd, not from the guards, and suddenly the earth beneath his feet began to shake.
Then all hell broke loose.
***********
The Arbiter had drawn out his sword as the new Kaidon had given the order for the Spartan to be executed, he was just about to jump at the Honour Guard moving in on him and kill him, when suddenly, a huge tremor occurred. Something big was coming, and it was getting closer.
***********
"Is that the Citadel up ahead?" Johnson shouted at the Monitor. The Scarab was moving at a very quick pace, it had engaged active camouflage, a little trick that was activated thanks to the ever helpful Engineers, and Avery could not help but marvel as they moved passed numerous outposts and patrols unnoticed.
"Indeed Sergeant, it is. John resides inside the main chamber. We must hurry, he is about to be killed." Mendicant Bias replied frantically.
"Don't you worry Light Bulb, if my boy Chief is in there, then you can be sure as hell I'm getting him out."
They were just more than 100 metres from the Citadel now. No one had detected them yet. Damn impressive technology, Johnson thought.
"So, what's the plan?" The Monitor queried.
Avery held down a trigger next to him, the front of the Scarab began to glow green.
"You'll see."
*************
"Any last words Demon?" The Honour Guard inquired as he drew out his sword.
"Yeah, the food was lousy." He taunted.
"Farewell Demon." The Elite said, and he raised his sword to strike. Everyone was silent as the climax of the day drew nigh. The rumbling outside was growing louder.
Suddenly, a mighty explosion crashed through the metal wall of the hall, and with a deafening surge, a powerful green beam exploded in the Honour Guard, incinerating him where he stood.
*************
"An impeccable shot Reclaimer." The Monitor remarked, impressed.
"Why thank you Light Bulb." Johnson said.
*************
As soon as the explosion tore through the silence of the hall, John took advantage of the turmoil that swept through the crowd. He ran up to one of the nearby Honour Guards, and felled it with a single blow to the head. The other Guards had noticed him attempting to escape, as had K'zath.
"Kill him!" The Kaidon shrieked manically. "Kill the Demon!" The words sent a shiver down John's spine, he had heard the same words from the Prophet of Truth not too long ago.
As one, around thirty Elites clad in gold and red armour rushed towards John, ceremonial energy staves discarded fro their burning swords. John bent down and picked up a stave, it's power depleted. Essentially, it was a toughened stick. You had to feel sorry for the Elites.
Around him, Grunts, Jackals and Elites were in panic. John realised for the first time that most of them probably weren't soldiers.
He was snatched from his train of thought though, as one of the Honour Guards lunged at him, a grotesque sneer on his face. With lightning quick reactions, John veered to the side, and dealt the Elite a deadly blow to the head. Another went a similar way.
A Jackal ran past in terror, Shield gauntlet raised above. With a well aimed kick, John sent the Jackal flying across the hall, where it smashed into the wall. Just before a barrage of plasma rifle fire hit John, he activated the dropped gauntlet, brought it in front of him and heard the superheated shots dissipated upon it's glowing surface.
Elite after Elite fell at the Spartans hand, he was invincible. He began to back away, searching for an escape. More Scarab blasts shot forth, destroying any attempts on the Elite's part of maintaining order. Just after John felled another desperate Honour Guard, curb stomping it on it's toughened neck, he saw a glint of light out of the corner of his eye. A Jackal sniper scope, and it was poised to fire. There was no way John would dodge it in time. He was dead.
Suddenly, next to the sniper, John saw a vivid violet Energy Sword activate, and an Elite in white, silver gilded armour cut down the Jackal. The Elite's head turned towards John, and gave a nod. Although John couldn't see his saviours face past it's headpiece, the nod seemed familiar.
Noticing the rush of enemies still surging towards him, John picked up a plasma rifle from one of his fallen foes, and ran. The Elite who had saved him followed.
"Fools!" He heard the Kaidon shout behind him. "I will kill this worm myself!"
The Spartan entered a tunnel, one which he hoped would lead outside of the Citadel. He took a glance back, and with a start saw the Elite who had saved him. John raised his rifle, even though the Elite had saved him, it could still be hostile.
Relief broke out as he saw it's face.
"Arbiter?" John asked in disbelief.
"The one and only Spartan. Now come, I know of a way out of here."
The Arbiter ran down the hallway, and John followed, still in shock. They turned a corner...
...And ran into an army of Elites, all armed with Energy Swords. The two friends backed away slowly, but stopped when they saw K'zath and five Honour Guard Ultras closing in from the other way.
They were trapped.
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